


Promises Made

by bountifulnuggets



Category: Original Work
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, F/M, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Japanese Character(s), Japanese Culture, Light Angst, My First AO3 Post
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-29
Updated: 2018-10-29
Packaged: 2019-08-09 14:16:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,663
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16451537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bountifulnuggets/pseuds/bountifulnuggets
Summary: She was his jewel, his shining star.





	Promises Made

**Author's Note:**

> Hi, I'm Nugget! :3 This is my first post on this site, feel free to leave a comment! Hateful ones will be deleted though. Thank you! ~

Kiyo was never a shy woman, but she was elegant and poised, like a true lady of the palace; and of course as the empress consort. She followed her duties as dutifully as possible, staying by her husband's side when needed, and giving love and support to her people, however much they needed.

She was good, and very much loved around the palace, even though she had been married to the emperor for just about a year, a rushed arrangement to keep balance in the palace and to give an heir to a dying throne.

But one thing about dear Kiyo, was that you never saw her without one thing by her side, like a faithful dog towards it's master, but this was far sweeter, despite the rumors started by a small bit of noblewomen that were too nosy for their own good.

“Nao-san, it's so good to see you.”

And that one thing, was Naoki. 

He was a farmer's son, a handsome boy with dark green eyes and wavy black hair, and a modest man just shy of 21, a little older than Kiyo. He hadn't dreamed of being up in the palace like this, settling himself for a simple life as a commoner out in the village below. 

He had however taken swordplay on the side over the years, and his skills were exceptional. It'd been just around the same time that Kiyo arrived, when he'd caught the emperor's eye, and that night was immediately assigned to be her guardian, with the roughly made clothes on his back and a few loaves of bread in his backpack being his only belongings when he entered the palace.

He'd thought it to be odd, that a lady seeming to carry herself so well needed a guardian to look after her, but he wasn't going to say anything. She looked at him with a curious gleam in her eye, as if he was some foreign item that her husband had brought back from one of his trips.

Naoki smiled at her that day, bowing his head to show his respect for this new and famous lady of the palace, and from that look in her eye, he knew that he'd grow to be quite fond of her.

And little did he know, Kiyo saw that smile and thought the exact same thing.

They'd been inseparable ever since.

“It's good to see you as well, my lady.” He said to her one early afternoon as he stepped into the tea house with her, settling himself down by her side on the tatami mats. Her presence was always a comfort to him, a warm, gentle aura.

“My husband is away for a few days.. the guards seem heartbroken without him.” She snorts, tucking a long strand of black hair behind her ear and gently sipping the tea from her cup on the table in front of her. “I have wished for the time away, so I am grateful.”

“Is he bothering you, Kiyo-sama?” The emperor was not a bad man, a well respected one at that but there were times where he was.. overbearing on her. She was to be out with her lessons at a certain time of day, and be back in by an exact time or she would not be able to go the next day. Some other days she wouldn't even be allowed outside, being called to stay by his side regardless of what was going on.

Naoki did not like it, not one bit, even worse as the days she was with the emperor he was not allowed to see her, and knowing he was powerless to do anything irritated him further.

“I.. wouldn't say that.” She spoke calmly, adjusting the white flowers that had been adorned in her hair.

He took a moment to look at her, noting the soft pink colors of her junihitoe, and how well it matched those flowers that she always managed to tuck in her hair, no matter what day it was. Kiyo was truly a beauty, and it was known. Even if she had never acknowledged it very much. But in Naoki's eyes, she would always be more beautiful than anything. 

“I have just needed time, time to think..” She sighed, sitting the cup back down and stared at the floor, as if suddenly lost in deep thought. Naoki placed a gentle, but firm hand on the side of her arm, watching her eyes move to avoid his own.

“My lady, please remember if there is something troubling you, you may tell me if it is your desire to do so. I will support you always.” He could tell she was hiding something, the look in those brown eyes of hers was just too obvious, and she knew him well enough to know that hiding anything from him was foolish. He could read her like the open pages of a book.

“He desires a child. He has told me he wishes to try for one as soon as he returns.” She speaks quickly, and her eyes trail back down to the floor. 

Naoki is silent for a moment, the grip on her arm loosening as he sighs, running his other hand through his hair. He knew this would happen eventually, topics of an heir already having been discussed not too shortly after they had arrived. On top of that, the throne was dying. The emperor was the last of his dynasty, and without someone to succeed him it would bring an end to his family name. 

Kiyo wasn't ready to be a mother. Not yet. She knew it, and Naoki knew it too, but whether they liked it or not it had to be done. She could not disobey her husband.

Still, the thought of that man's hands touching his lady in that sort of manner, or her being put into a situation she was not comfortable with would never fail to upset him.

“What shall I do? I can handle myself quite well, and I know what I must do, but Nao-san.. I am afraid.  
What if something happens to me? Or the child? Or both, and i never see you again or even have a chance to see it? I am being foolish. Nothing has even happened yet.”

She was trembling, he could tell by the way she gripped her cup, and rightfully so. 

“I'm not ready..”

“Come here.” Naoki removes the sword from its place on his side and moves his legs to sit in a criss-cross position, a much more comfortable way to stay instead of on his knees, and opens up his arms to her.

Without a second thought, she's cradled in his lap, her arms wrapped around his upper body and his own arm supporting her back while the other was tucked underneath her legs, like a groom carrying his new bride. It was a bit difficult to do since she was wearing all those robes, but they made it work.

“This is troubling me as well, my lady. But please do not fret. Whatever may happen, I will be by your side any moment I can. You will not be alone.”

She always loved that, whatever problem she had he'd be there, keeping her safe and reminding her she would always have his support. 

She feels him squeeze her a bit closer, resting his cheek on the top of her head and nuzzling his nose a bit into her hair.

They'd never got to hold each other like this, both having mutually agreed it would be too risky as the emperor or the other guards could come in at any time, especially when they needed her.

But with him gone and the others too involved with other duties, he had the perfect moment to have her closer to him, and he was going to enjoy every second. The feeling of her being in his arms was something he would never get tired of.

She hides her face in his chest and naturally, he pulls her closer.

“Nao-san.” She speaks after a short moment of silence, her head never moving from where it rested.

“Yes?”

“If I have this child, promise me something.”

“Anything, Kiyo-sama.”

“If we both make it, will you also watch over my child, as you have been watching me?” He nods, once and nuzzles her again. “I promise I will keep them safe along with you, it will not know harm.”

“And if I don't make it?”

He tries not to think about it, the thought of losing her would certainly tear him apart.

But he would pull through the best way he could, for her and for her potential child.

“I shall watch them, like I have you. They will be kept safe and taken care of, while knowing how beautiful of a lady their mother was.”

Kiyo had dreamed late one night of what her own children with him would be like, imagining a little boy or girl with her brown eyes and the sloped, elegant shape of Naoki's nose, smiling and laughing without a care in the world.

As much as she wished it, she knew that she couldn't have that dream. She had to do her duties, as she promised. She was never one to break a promise. She was content with the simple fact he was by her side.

“Nao-san.” She speaks again, softly this time.

“Mm..” He mumbles quietly, his eyes closed peacefully now, his head still resting against hers.

“I love you.”

He squeezes her again, his hold on her never faltering.

“I love you very much, my lady. I will cherish you until my dying breath.”

They may not have been able to be how they wished to be, but regardless of what happened she would always be his beloved lady and he her guardian, her most treasured person, always loving and supporting each other as much as they could.

And that was all they needed.


End file.
